On a bright Sunday afternoon, a couple on the closer side of seventy walked into the cozy little neighborhood theater that I too had chosen to watch my film of choice for the day. Surprisingly enough, the couple continued their merry way into the same theater as I with the full intention of watching the sixth installment of the Fast & Furious series. It always fascinates me to watch what kind of people come to see certain movies and this certainly peaked my interest. The more I thought about it, the more I realized I had to know and before I could stop myself, I went up and asked them why they were coming to see this movie. “We just love them,” the husband said turning to his wife. “Oh you know how it goes,” she chimed in “with all the other garbage that’s out there, we want to watch somethin’ fun. This we can agree on.”
In honesty, they stole the words straight from my mouth. Although I had a hard time restraining my laughter thinking about my respectively elderly friends when Vin Diesel took off his shirt to reveal his gloriously manufactured abs, I had to completely agree that the series’ success was mostly based on the tight character development that drives the somewhat repetitive plot line. It reminds you of the stunts you wish you could do and initiates you straight into the badass family code. What a gorgeous family to be a part of, right? But the familial ties go much deeper than sharing a street number. The writers have made it very clear that while the jobs have become increasingly illegal and now involving the blurred lines of the FBI, honor comes before money and protecting your own is more than just being good or evil.
And the hairpin turns are not just for the cars. I always seem to find myself on the edge of my seat wondering if someone will die, resurface, or even both. As for what should have been the mantra of the entire series, “Some things you just have to take on faith.” While this movie is a guilty pleasure as the day is long, there is no denying that it deserves a four out of five stars. As a hardly relatable white girl, there is still no doubt that I will shell out time and money to jam uncoordinatedly to the “get rich or die tryin’” rap theme song and see just who will leave an impressive car track in my mind.
